Key-hole guard



(No Model.)

G. H. REED. KEY HOLE GUARD.

No. 449,917. Patented Apr. 7, 1891.

. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

I'IORATIO G. H. REED, OF OSHKOSH, \VISOONSIN.

KEY-HOLE GUARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 449,917, dated April 7, 1891. Application filed October 11, 1890- ?ierial No. 367,815. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HORATIO G. H. REED, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Oshkosh, in the county of Winnebago, and in the State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Key- Hole Guards; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to the key-hole escutcheons of doors, drawers, and other structures to which looks are or may be applied;

and the invention consists in certain peculiar and novel features of construction and arrangement, as hereinafter described, and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is an inner side elevation of an escutcheon-plate with my improved guard applied thereto, the said view being taken on line 1 1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section of a lock and escutcheon-plate on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of a portion of the escutcheon-plate, showing the slot in which the stem of the guard-operating knob works.

The objects of my invention are to produce means whereby the key-holes of doors, drawers, desk and furniture tops, &c., can be either wholly closed to protect the interiors of the looks or partially closed after the keys have been inserted, so as to prevent accidental misplacement and loss of the keys. These results I attain by virtue of the construction which I will now proceed to describe.

Referring to the drawings, A designates the frame or casing of a lock, which is designed to contain any suitable or preferred type of locking mechanism, (not shown,) and which in this instance is shown as of elongated rectangular form suitable for application to a door or similar structure. It is to be understood that this precise form of casingis shown for purposes of illustration only, and may be varied as circumstances may suggest.

B designates the removable cover or escntcheon-plate of the lock, which in this instance is shown as of elongated rectangular form and as having at its upper part an opening 1) to receive the stern of a knob, said opening being preferably surrounded by a boss 6 on the outer side of the escutcheon-plate or cover B. At its lower portion the plate B is formed with a key-hole 19 which may be either of the common form shown or of any other form to accord with the particular form of key required by the locking mechanism.

C designates a guard-plate, which in this instance is of triangular form and pivoted at its apex upon the inner side of plate B by a pin, screw, or rivet 0, extending through a vertically-elongated opening or slotc' in the guard-and extending also through the plate B at a point below the opening I) of thelatter. Just above the key-hole b the plate B-is formed with a horizontal segmental slot b the lower margin of which is formed with three offsets or recesses b b b, and through this slot extends the stem d of a knob D, the said stem being threaded at its inner end into an adjacent part of the guard O. The lower part of this guard is formed with an opening 0 which corresponds very nearlywith the form of the key-hole N, of whatever form that may be.

This opening 0 varies from the precise form of the key-hole b however, by havingits upper part extended or recessed, as shown at a, for a purpose to be presently explain ed. The lower marginof the guardO is formed with three recesses o c, which engage at times with a pin or stud E, projecting inwardly from the lower part of the plate B. The guardC is pressed downwardly by a spring F, which is shown as of L shape with its free end engaging the apex of the guard and with its opposite end attached by a screw f to the inner side of the plate B.

The operation of this structure is as follows: By lifting the knob D and moving it laterally so that its stem d enters the recess 11 of the slot 11 the guard will be first raised, then swung laterally, and then depressed till its notch 0'' receives the stud E. The opening of the guard will now register with the keyhole b and a keyas, for instance, G-can be inserted into the lock. 'By now raising the knob D and moving it laterally so that its stem (Z n ters the recess b of slot 12 the lower part of the key-hole is closed by the solid lower portion of the guard,the notch cof the guard receiving the stud E and the barrel 9 of the key entering the extension 0 01'? theopening 0 Thus the bit g of the key is retained in the lock, and the key cannot be accidentally misplaced from or drop out of the lock. By

shifting the guard to the first-described position the key can be withdrawn from the lock, and then, if the knob D be shifted so as to insert its stem d into the recess 1) of the slot 12 the guard will be moved so as to cause its notch cf to receive the stud E, and the solid part of the guard to the left of the opening 0 in Fig. 1 will completely cover and close the keyhole b and protect the interior of the lock against dust, moisture, or from being tampered with, while also preventing the insertion of a false or other key.

My described attachment is simple and inexpensive and also easily manipulated, and operates as an efficient safety attachment to the lock, retaining the key securely against removal from the lock, and effectually protecting the interior of the lock against injury and also against being tampered with.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

' 1. Animproved safety attachment for looks, comprising an escutcheon-plate having a slot provided with one or more marginal recesses and an inwardly-extending support, a springcontrolled guard-plate provided with a slot engaging the support and having an opening conforming approximately to the shape of the key hole in the escutcheon-plate, and a stud on the guard-plate extending through the said slot in the escuteheon-plate for engagement with the said marginal recesses thereof, substantially as set forth.

2. An improved safety attachment for locks, comprising an escutcheon-plate having an inwardly-extending stud and a slot provided with one or more marginal recesses, a triangular movable guard-plate provided with recesses at its lower margin for engagement with said stud and having an opening conforming Witnesses:

H. G. UNDERWooD, WM. KLUG. 

